Nine Miracles Your Body Performs While You Sleep

Never think that sleep is a waste of time. Your body performs many physiological processes or what I call “miracles” that are vital for your health while you sleep. Our bodies were created by God to move during the day and recuperate at night. The sunlight during the day helps to awaken us and keeps us alert while it is out. Until recently, people’s circadian rhythms or sleep/wake cycles were regulated by the rising and setting of the sun. The sun stimulates us to get up. When nighttime arrives, our bodies begin to prepare for these many miracles which normally happen during darkness. The invention of the light bulb is what has caused this disruption to our sleep cycle.

According to Dr. Russell Foster, a British sleep expert, 33 percent of us are not getting enough sleep. Unfortunately, 59 percent of all cancer patients struggle with insomnia. Dr. Daniel Amen, a psychiatrist and brain expert, says “Adequate sleep turns on 700 health-promoting genes in the human body. I don’t know about you, but I don’t want to miss out on all those health-promoting genes or miracles!

Here are nine miracles your body performs while you sleep. Even though you are in Never Neverland and not aware, your body:

Processes memories and information. According to Dr. Michael Bruce, the Sleep Doctor, three things happen when we lose one night’s sleep: 1) our reaction time slows down, 2) our emotions get out of control, and 3) our thinking slows down. As an educator, I learned that REM sleep is when our short-term memory moves to long-term memory. On top of that, Dr. Matthew Walker, a professor of neuroscience and psychology at the University of California, Berkeley, says, “A lack of sleep will prevent your brain from making and creating new memories.”

Disposes of toxins, and waste. While you are sleeping, your brain is not dormant. Your brain is actively involved in detoxing and repairing itself. According to Harvard Health, the brain has a waste management system called the glymphatic system. This series of tubes carry fresh fluid into the brain, mix the fresh fluid with waste from brain cells including beta-amyloid proteins linked to Alzheimer’s, and then flush the waste out of the brain and into the blood. During deep sleep, your body repairs muscles, organs, and other cells, and it also releases chemicals to strengthen your immune system.

Regulates brain chemicals involved in sleep, mood, and ability to pay attention. Yes, sleep plays a crucial role in regulating brain chemicals, including neurotransmitters and hormones. These chemicals affect our sleep-wake cycles and enhance overall brain function. Serotonin and dopamine are two neurotransmitters that affect our mood and are regulated through deep sleep. So deep sleep is one of the first things you should look at when dealing with depression and other mood disorders. My video on “Eight Natural Ways to Fight Depression” will be referenced below. According to Harvard Health, when people are sleep-deprived, their ability to pay attention and concentrate declines. This is why many pediatricians refuse to prescribe ADHD medications for children until they are assured that sleep is not the issue. Did you know that a person who has not slept for several days has the same symptoms as a person who’s had too much to drink? Don’t make people wonder whether you’ve been drinking or not!

Reduces cortisol levels and blood pressure. Adequate sleep is vital for regulating cortisol levels and blood pressure. Cortisol levels normally peak in the morning and decline throughout the day, but insufficient sleep disrupts this rhythm which can lead to higher cortisol levels in the evening. This makes it hard to go to sleep. When you’re sleep-deprived, your body releases cortisol which leads to increased heart rate and blood pressure. This is why sleep deprivation leads to higher cortisol levels and blood pressure which may lead to cardiovascular disease. According to the Mayo Clinic, the less you sleep, the higher your blood pressure may go. When you sleep, your heart rate slows down and your heart and blood vessels are repaired. The lowering of blood pressure during sleep is a normal part of our body’s self-healing

Increases melatonin. Melatonin levels naturally rise in the evening in response to darkness and peak during deep sleep playing a crucial role in regulating sleep and circadian rhythms. This hormone, produced in the pineal gland plays a significant role in the immune system and is a powerful disease and cancer fighter. Melatonin exerts its anticancer functions during tumor initiation, promotion, and progression by targeting various signaling pathways. So this increase in melatonin is a necessary must for all people, but especially for cancer patients.

Boosts the immune system. Deep sleep plays a crucial role in strengthening our immune system and detecting and killing cancer cells. Studies show that sleep deprivation can suppress immune cells and interfere with their cancer-killing capabilities. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC11311741/# According to Dr. Michael Bruce, the more sleep- deprived you are, the more cancer cells multiply. He also believes that sleep affects every organ system and every disease state. Dr. Matthew Walker warns us that after one night of 4-5 hours sleep, there is a 70 percent reduction in anti-cancer lymphocytes called natural killer cells.

Repairs, regenerates, and restores your body. Sleep allows the body to repair and replenish cellular components that become depleted during the day. Your body also uses less energy during sleep which allows your cells to restore and resupply energy for the next day. During sleep, your body cycles through four different stages, and each of these stages contributes to different restorative processes. Deep sleep or NREM Stage 3 is the deepest and most restorative stage of sleep. It’s where the body repairs tissues, builds bone and muscles, and strengthens the immune system. There’s no better time for your body to repair and regenerate than while you are sleeping.

Burns calories and controls hunger. Most of your calorie-burning takes place during REM sleep, but on average, you burn about 50 calories per hour of sleep. Never forget that your body performs many miracles while you are sleeping. Have you ever noticed how hungry you are when you are sleep-deprived? That’s because a lack of sleep elevates ghrelin and suppresses leptin which leads to weight gain and greater feelings of hunger. There’s no doubt that insufficient sleep leads to increased hunger and cravings while sufficient sleep creates a balance of appetite and satiation.

Slows aging. Put me down for that one! And why would this be? Because sleep deprivation disrupts hormonal balance and accelerates cellular aging. It’s this hormonal balance that is crucial for maintaining healthy aging processes. Research indicates that individuals who get quality sleep each night show fewer signs of aging and live longer. Some people call this “turning back your biological clock” and my video on this will be referenced below.

Sleep is a restorative process that allows the body to process information, detox, and repair, generate, and restore energy levels, metabolism, blood sugar, and blood pressure. These nine miracles your body performs while you sleep are powerful and have an impact on your health. Most of all, it’s free. It may take some time, but it won’t cost you a dime. The single most important activity we do for our health each day is sleep. We tend to overlook that the cure to many of our ailments may be as close as our own pillow. And the deeper you sleep, the more your body works to heal itself.

Did you know that sleep slows aging? What issue are you dealing with that might relate to sleep deprivation?

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Nine Miracles Your Body Performs While You Sleep

Related videos:

Eight Natural Ways to Fight Depression

How to Turn Back Your Biological Clock

For Your Heath,

Ginny

Ginny Dent Brant is a speaker and writer who grew up in the halls of power in Washington, DC. She has battled cancer, ministered around the world, and served on the front lines of American culture as a counselor, educator, wellness advocate, and adjunct professor. Brant’s award-winning book, Finding True Freedom: From the White House to the World, was endorsed by Chuck Colson and featured in many TV and media interviews. Unleash Your God-Given Healing: Eight Steps to Prevent and Survive Cancer was released in May 2020 after her journey with cancer and was recently awarded the First Place Golden Scrolls Award for Memoirs, a finalist in Serious Writers Book of the Decade, and Second Place in both Selah Awards for Memoirs and Director’s Choice Award for Nonfiction at the Blue Ridge Mountain Christian Writer’s Conference. It recently received the Christian Authors Network’s (CAN) Gold Award for Excellence in Marketing for reaching 62.5 million people with a message of cancer prevention and survival. It was written with commentary from an oncologist and was featured on CBN’s Healthy Living Show, Atlanta Live, and CTN’s Homekeepers along with over 75 media outlets. Learn more and cancer and wellness prevention blog and book information at www.ginnybrant.com. Ginny is on YouTube